58 



iS;i)e iTarmcr's iHoittl)ln bisitor. 



mers willi vvlioiri lie lias coiiveiseil. We are 

 aware tluit resiills ilo not apppai' to have been 

 uniloini in regard lo the action of ashfs, hut we 

 have heard Ihe same views as are held hy Mr. 

 Cris|iell frequently given hy other farmers. — Cul- 

 tivator. 



Grc;b Worms. — A person writing to the New 

 Genesee Fanner says that afier finilin"; that the 

 griili wiirni was nilliiij; off his corn and calihaiies 

 at a sad rate, he tir,-t ajiplied ashes, then soot, 

 then Srotcli snuff lo the hill, hopinsf to destroy 

 or drive away the worm, hnt it was all to no pin-- 

 pose. lie afterwards applied two lalile spoons'- 

 i'nl of iart to each hill — pl.icinf;- it so as not lo 

 touch the plant. The wornrs left iroMiediately. 



In some cases salt mriy be an effectual remedy. 

 We have known inslaiines, however, in which 

 the appliraiit)!! r)f a much larger quantity had 

 not the desired effect. 



Apples PRESERVfjn Eiohtee.n Months. — It 

 will lie seen liy the follovviii;{ note to the Mon- 

 monlh Enquirer, of New Jersey, that the most 

 usefid if not the most rlelicioiis (iiiit of our rli- 

 Miate, may he preserved almost an indefinite pe- 

 riod in the fullest perfection. The apples here 

 Bpoken of have been preserved some eighteen 

 months: 



Mr. Editor: — I send yon an apple which I 

 bought in the fall of 1843, of my neiu:hlior, Tho- 

 iiiiis Meirs. Ainon;; others, it was put into my 

 cellar, in open casks; and about the Isi of-fami- 

 iny, 1844,1 overhauled them and put three bar- 

 rels away, packed ill plaster of Paris — first a layer 

 ol' [ilasler, then a layer of apples — and so alter- 

 nately till the barrels were tilled. They were 

 then headed up, and stood in the cellar till the 

 early jiart of last snmiiier, when I overhauled and 

 assorted them, and put them awaj in a box, in 

 layers of dry oak saw-dust. The box had a lock 

 and key, and has been kept lockeil up only when 

 we frot apples out to use. We continued using 

 out of the box, occasionally, till some time after 

 early apples were ripe, and 1 supposed they were 

 all liseil out, but on town-meeting day, the lltli 

 of March, 1845, (it being stormy) I tohl my man 

 lo assort my apples, and fill that bix again with 

 apples and saw-dust. Upon unlocking the box, 

 and taking the saw-dust out, lo our surprise there 

 were three apples in the box, and all of them 

 perfectly sound. The apple I send you having 

 been since that time kept in a warm room, has 

 romiiienced, as you perceive, lo rot. The above 

 is submitted, respectfully, for the benefit of all 

 lovers of good apples. Yours respectlully, 



.Iames Lawrence. 



March 18, 1845. 



Running Bea.ns. — The prettiest way for a man 

 who cnllivates but liiile land, lo raise Fiisown dry 

 beans liir next winter's use, is — not lo plant the 

 bush kinds by tlieinselves, for litis will require 

 loo much laud, as ihe product is small — but to 

 raise w liiie pole beans. The common case-Unife 

 beaii" arc excellent for this purpose. 



Strike out a dozen or more circles on the 

 groiiiid, as large .-is a cart-whi'd. Put a wheel- 

 bnirow load of manure into it, and spade it U|> 

 with llie carlh. Drop the seeds in the circle, on 

 the outer edge of llii! hill, say six inches apart. 

 Then insert eight or leu pedes just within the cir- 

 cle, at eipial distances from each other, and lie 

 the lops of the whole logcther — forming a cone. 

 Cover up the seed, and wait the result. 



Each of these hills will yield you a peck or 

 half biislad of dry beans next fall — « hicli if you 

 liavo hilt a doKcn such hills, will give you per- 

 haps, half a dozen bushels. This will be enough 

 for your purposes. By this course, but a little 

 land is occupied. Pole beans will yield very 

 much more ahnndantiy tlnm bush beans, and oc- 

 cupy air, whilst the latter must have ihc surliice 

 of iho eurth. 



Lucerne. 



This, says Ihe IMaini^ Cultivator, is a most de- 

 sirable gr.iss For several years past it has been 

 cultivated more or less extensively In Maine and 

 Massachuseits, as well as in various sections of 

 New Hanqishire and Vi'imont. Perhaps there 

 are few grasses in reli'icnce to which the expres- 

 simi of public senliiiient has biHui more (lecidedly 

 and universally (iivorable. It has been cullivated 

 in Spain, Italy, France, England, Seollaml, Ire- 



land, Wales, Flanders, and on ull the sliores of 

 Ihe Medilerrancan, as well as in most of the 

 countries of the F.asl. As early as the days of 

 the Greek and Roman Republics, its value was 

 well imder-lood, and minute accounts, both of its 

 properties ami the mi.ilus operandi of ils cultiva- 

 lion, are extant in the literalme of both these na- 

 tions. Mr Low, in his " Practical Agriculture," 

 recommends sowing it broad-cast in the spring, 

 in the same manner as clover is sown. Hysome, 

 however, the drill meiliod is preferred, as aflind- 

 ing greater facilities for weeding, and keeping 

 out spurious vegetation, by which its vigor is con- 

 siderably diminished, ami the crcp of course ren- 

 dered of leSs value as a feed f()r stock. As it is 

 not adapted lo grow under the shade of other 

 plants, it is recommended, when the broad-cast 

 system is adopted, to sow without a cross — allow- 

 ing it the entire range of pasturage contained in 

 the soil. Like all cullivated forage plants, Lu- 

 cer:ie gradually yields to the encroachments of 

 grasses and the harder indigenous plants — a cir- 

 cumstance which corroborates the superior ail- 

 vantage of cultivating it on the ilrill system, or 

 rows. From sixteen lo tweniy pounds of .seed 

 are required to the acre, though some sow inindi 

 more, often as many as thirty pounds. This, 

 however, we consider a useless extravagance, es- 

 pecially where the soil has been prepared by deep 

 ploiigliing and Ihe application of manure. In 

 England, Lucerne is <irdiuarily preceded by a 

 summer fallow, or by a fallow cn'p — such as 

 beets, carrots, turnips or potatoes. The follovv- 

 ing, in referiMice lo the cultivation of Lucerne, 

 we cut from an exchange : — 



In the month of August, the first year when in 

 flower, the crop may be mown, and, alter this 

 first cutting, the shoots may lie kept down Ity a 

 slight pasluring with sheep, but not while the 

 soil is wet, nor continued to a late period. 



In the month of May, of the secoiul year, the 

 crop will be ready f()r the first cutting, and may 

 be mown three or finir times during the season. 

 It does not, however, arrive at its full growth till 

 its third year, after which, it will yield a large re- 

 turn in rich and early foliage. But it requires to 

 be manured at interval.s, as every fourth or filih 

 year. The manure may be firm-yard dung, 

 spre.-id upon the surlace after the last cutting, in 

 autumn or early in the spring. 



The jireceding supposes that the ground iiiusl 

 be horse or hanil-hoed early in the spring to keep 

 down all weeds, and to slir the earth about the 

 roots, and also to hand-hoe immediately iiftereach 

 culling. 



When the system of broadcast is adopted, the 

 difTerence in the method of tillage is, that, in 

 place of the horse and hand-line, the common 

 iiarrow is used, which, passing over the surliice, 

 stirs the soil about the roots of the plants, and 

 drags up and destroys the weeds ; ihe Lucerne 

 itself having a strong root striking downwards, 

 is not lorn up by the rough treatment, but, on the 

 contrary, is benefilted by slirring the soil round 

 its roots and stems. 



In laying down lands to gras.s, remember that 

 Ihe bestowrnent of a few extra pounds of seed 

 is no loss. Farmers often miss it by being too 

 parsimimions in this inatlei'. Their calculations 

 are made on the supposition ihatn// that is sown 

 will vegetate, whereas not more than half of it 

 ever sprouts. — jVaine Cut. 



Guano — A writer in the Washington Globe 

 remarks as follows concerning this inamire: 



For Mr. George, of Baltimore, you have ad- 

 vertised guano iiir sale. Now, as probably not 

 one half of your readers know what guano is, 

 perniil mu a small space to explain that is the 

 droppings of sea birds ihat feed, thiongh the day, 

 on fish in the Pacific Ocean, and s<'tlle at nights 

 on islands and high peaks of laiiil on ihe coast 

 of Peru. These deposits have been accniiiida- 

 ling since fish and birds wire created. So nu- 

 merous are these birds, or rather have been, Ihal 

 it is conipiiled that if each one voids one ounce 

 in the i.'oiirse of the night, the aggregate quanti- 

 ty has been 00 tons in twenty-four hours, or 'J'2,- 

 8.50 tons annually, flom time immemorial. Von 

 may juilge from ihis nice cidi'iilation, made by 

 Iravellcrs and voyagers, that ihi're is something 

 rerij atlractire in the snljcci. As to ils (pialiiies 

 and nse.s, the writer of this has received lellers 

 within a few days from two scienlilic and very 



judicious practical fiirmers — Friends — who are 

 slow lo be moved — one in Montgomery counly, 

 and inie in Petersburg, Virginia — both of whom 

 speak of guano, after trial, as ihe cheapest and 

 most powerfiil of all known ferlilizer,s. I shoul.l 

 be !;l (I to on/jfi their remarks; hut, in the din 

 of politics, who cares about agriculture ? 



Well, as to ils history as a manure in England, 

 give me room only to say that, in 1840, only 

 iweniy casks were taken to that country. Hav- 

 ing tried these Iweniy casks, in 1841 ihey im- 

 pniteil eight liiiiidred tons; in I84'2 ten thousand 

 ions; and twenty ihonsand Ions in 1843. How 

 is it now ? Why in 1844, at Ihe close of .Ati;;iist 

 l.ist, ViO vessels had arrived at Ichaboe, a small 

 i>land on the coast of Africa, and many more 

 were expected. Allowing 400 tons to be the av- 

 erage tonnage of each, it is believed lhal, in the 

 course of the current year, lliere will have been 

 received fVom that island 70,000 tons, besides 

 30,0U0 tons from Peru, and lhal, after various ex- 

 periments, increasing every year for the last tour 

 years. In short, its effects have been most beiie- 

 licial on all the crops to w hich it has been applif-d, 

 in Knglainl and in America. In Maryland, last 

 year, it had a powerful effect on the tobacco beds, 

 not only in accelerating ihe growth of the plants, 

 but in the prevention, or destruction of the fly. 

 .And Mr. Pleasants, of Peteisbiirg, saysthat even 

 when he applieil liiit one hundred pounds to the 

 acre mi wheat, the effect was most striking. 



"Guano," says a respectable and disiiiierested 

 writer, " is tilso of great use lo the vine ; and it 

 is admitted that the district of Moqnegno owes 

 the abimdiince anil quality of its wines to Ihe ap- 

 plication of this kind of manure in the early 

 stages of its growth." " It noi only," says he, 

 " gives health and robustness to trees and shrubs, 

 but also enhances the beauty and flavor of Eu- 

 ropean as well as indigenous fruits." 



Ulloa afKriiis that nowhere are the grape, po- 

 megranate, peaidi, apricot and quince, so beauti- 

 ful and well flavored as in the Peruvian valleys, 

 where guano is .applied to them as a manure. — 

 He says llie same of the chirimoya (a delightful 

 Iriiil, for a knowledge of vvhich lam indebted to 

 Mr. Compino, fiirnierly minister liom Chi'i,) and 

 other fiiiits, and his testimony is fully borne out 

 by that of other iravellers. 



Attainino Wealth Sdddenly. — ."Vmong ihe 

 various means of attaining sudden wealth in this 

 country, ihe discovery of a popular " patent" med- 

 icine has often proved singularly successful. A 

 letter from New Y(tf4i, published in the Charles- 

 ton Cornier, cites various examples in point. — 

 Braiidrelh, with his pills, has risen from a poor 

 man to be a man of extensive forimie. He baa 

 now at Sing Sing a three story factory for grind- 

 ing his medicines. .Aloes are carried into it by 

 the ton, and whole cargoes of the pills are de- 

 spalcheil lo every part of the Union, and down 

 everyliody's throat. He has expended ihirty-tivo 

 thousand dollars in a single year for advertise- 

 ments. Coniitock begnii with nothing, bill by 

 crowding his patent iiieilicincs, has been able lo 

 purchase one of the finest houses in Union Place, 

 and gives niagniliccnl soirees, suppers, &c. .Mof- 

 fat, adding bitters to pills, has run up a liandsomH 

 liirlune of nearly $300,000. Slu'ruiaii, taking the 

 lozenge line, has emerged from his liille shop in 

 Nassau slreel, into ii buyer of lots and houses by 

 the wholesale. 1 need not mention Svvaim, of 

 Philadelphia, who by pouriiis his panacea into 

 people's stomachs, can aff nd lo buy n single head 

 pearl for his ilaiigliter worth Sf.iO,000 — lo prove 

 Ihat wc arc a pill-eating and bitters-drinking peo- 



I'''-' ___________ 



Planting Corn. — Drop six grains in each hill 

 at first, in miler to ihin lo three plants ; pluck out 

 the weakest. 



Preparation of Seeo Wheat. — By sieves of 



suitable size the largest and best iiraiii may be 

 separated ; by washing in water light seeds, of 

 various kinds, and the lightest irrainwill swim 

 and may be skimmed off. By adding salt to the 

 water, w hich will increase its specific gravity, 

 all impciii'cl grains, and bai ley and oals will rise 

 to the surface. Then it will be well to steep llio 

 seed a day or Iwo in salt water; after which add 

 half a peck of fresh shirked lime lo a bii>liel of 

 grain, mix thoroughly, ihat every kernel may be- 

 come coaled with lime. Let it remain half a day 



